BUSINESS / NEWS 12 email: news@printmonthly.co.uk January / February 2024 - Issue 346 PrintMonthly printmonthly PrintMonthlyMagazine Müller Martini Group has acquired all of the shares of the Hunkeler Group in a deal that was decided by both owner families to bundle together innovation activities and better serve customers around the world. The deal means Hunkeler and Crédit Mutuel Equity have sold off all their shares to Müller Martini but have decided to not disclose the purchase price to the public. As two companies which produce solutions for post-print paper processing both groups have focused on the economical production of individualised print products within automated smart factories. Müller Martini and Hunkeler have a long history with each other and within the industry starting when Hans Müller worked as a mechanical engineer for Hunkeler during World War II. Müller then set up his own business in 1946 and continued a relationship with Hunkeler thanks to the local proximity the two businesses had in the Zofingen region of Switzerland. Speaking about the purchase, Stefan Hunkeler, president of the Board of Hunkeler, and Michel Hunkeler, delegate of the Board of Hunkeler, add: "The opportunity for the merger is currently greatly beneficial for both partners and our joint customers, as it will result in considerable advantages in a combined enterprise. This is also a strong commitment for the Zofingen region." The merger was announced after careful consideration on December 6th, 2023, and is another example of an increasing amount of mergers and acquisitions taking place in the print industry in recent months. Hunkeler and Müller Martini merge [L to R] Stefan Hunkeler, Michel Hunkeler, Bruno Müller, Rudolf Müller, Daniel Erni, and Franz Hunkeler Mail Solutions acquires Adare SEC's Kalamazoo Karl Lee, managing director of telford-based Mail Solutions Telford-based envelope and print solutions company Mail Solutions has acquired Kalamazoo – a security print business and division of Adare SEC. Kalamazoo has a long-standing history having been producing secure documents for well-known organisations for over 100 years. Mail Solutions was founded in 2000 and has evolved into a £30m+ turnover business which works with commercial and public sector clients to provide printed envelopes, direct mail stationary, letters and leaflets, and more. The acquisition was completed on October 31st, 2023, for an undisclosed sum. As a result, Kalamazoo’s Redditch site remains fully operational with all staff moving across to Mail Solutions under TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings Protection of Employment rights). Adare SEC will continue to focus on areas that align with its long-term vision and objectives. By David Osgar The future of Incodia International’s Colchester site is under review less than a year after being acquired. Woodberry Packaging Group acquired Incodia International in February of this year however, Mark Kerridge of Woodberry explained that despite the team’s best efforts, the Colchester manufacturing site is not proving to be profitable to the Group. The consultation process is expected to take at least 30 days and in this time, any other feasible alternatives to closure will be explored. It is solely the Colchester site under consultation with all other Woodberry Packaging companies operating as usual. In July, Woodberry extended its card capabilities with the acquisition of Precision Card Services. Incodia’s Colchester site enters consultation Fujifilm and eProductivity Software are set to partner to demonstrate how Fujifilm’s XMF PressReady workflow can be paired with ePS’ MarketDirect StoreFront e-commerce and MIS system. These solutions can be integrated to manage print production to Fujifilm’s Revoria and Apeos range of digital presses. This will be demonstrated at Fujifilm’s European Print Experience Centres in Germany and Belgium as well as at Fujifilm’s Peak Performance Print event at the end of the month. Fujifilm and ePS customers will be able to see real examples of an end-to-end workflow from job onboarding through a web-to-print system and registering the job in an MIS to the full management of the print job. [L to R] John Davies, Fujifilm Europe and John Morley, eProductivity Software Incodia International’s Colchester site has entered a formal consultation process Fujifilm and ePS to demo end-to-end workflow Print-on-demand and merchandise platform, Merchr, has increased its capacity and machinery following a £250,000 investment. The business has taken delivery of five new machines and has also recruited several new roles within its team including backend and front-end web developers as well as e-commerce and marketing staff. Merchr was founded by Martin Varley, a senior executive in the personalised products industry, who backed a team of experienced professionals after securing £350,000 in an oversubscribed pre-seed fundraising round. The equipment includes a flatbed printer, a 360-degree cylinder printer for bottles, a 360-degree heat press for hats as well as a Graphtec cutting plotter. Print-on-demand platform increases investments Head of operations at Merchr, Jack Fox, with a range of the company’s printed products
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjM0NDIxOA==